Café Finds Support From FSA, Grad Dean

By Rohma Abbas

The University Café is to remain open with limited hours until Dec. 22 operated by the Faculty Student Association (FSA) and Chartwells (Campus Dining), according to Angela Agnello, director of marketing and communications for FSA. She also confirmed that the Café will be open in the spring.

Sunday Concert Series to Continue

The new hours for this semester are Wednesday through Friday, 7 p.m. to 12 a.m. The Café will be open during previously booked special events including the Sunday Acoustic Concert Series according to the FSA website.  The series has also been given the go ahead to book dates for next semester at the Café, Agnello said.

The Graduate Student Organization (GSO) Lounge Committee decided on Nov. 14 to withdraw all funding of the Café at the end of that month due to losses of approximately $8,000 in September and October each.

The GSO Senate decided against overturning the committee’s decision at an emergency meeting on Nov. 21. Lawrence Martin, who is Dean of the Graduate School and advisor to the GSO, said that the decision to withdraw funding was unexpected: “I always assumed GSO would operate the Café forever.”

Chartwells, which operates on campus under the Campus Dining moniker, continues to manage the facility and hold the Café’s liquor license. Prior to the GSO withdrawing its subsidy, the Lounge Committee had the power to make recommendations regarding management and staffing of the Cafe to the FSA and Chartwells.

Paul Crespo, the manager of the Café, would not comment on the situation.

Martin was unsure of what any future role of the GSO would be.  “The GSO has no particular management expertise," he said,  "It’s up to the university to decide how to manage.”

Martin is attempting to analyze what went wrong with the Café this year.  He said he has turned to outside advice, seeking guidance from Chuck Herman, a personal acquaintance familiar with the bar business and former owner of a Riverhead bar.

The Cafe’s future after Dec. 22 is still unclear. Martin mentioned that an outside group, the makeup of which he would not disclose, has expressed interest in the management of the Café. Agnello mentioned the possibility of the venue moving its location in fall of 2007

Martin has high hopes in keeping the Cafe running next semester and into the long-term. “We just know we don’t want it to close,” he said.